Summary

7 facilities within 25 miles of Roanoke publish prices for MRI Lumbar Spine without Contrast. Cash prices range from $2,130 to $10,641 — a 5.0x difference for an identical procedure. The Virginia average is $2,844.

Choosing the lowest-priced facility over the highest saves $8,511.

$2,130 lowest
$10,641 highest
Best Value

Carilion New River Valley Medical Center

Christiansburg, VA · Carilion Clinic · 0.1 mi

$2,147 Cash price
4/5 CMS rating
69.0% Patient satisfaction

Lowest price among hospitals rated 4 stars or above. Patient satisfaction: 69%. Cash price of $2,147 is below the statewide average of $2,844.

All facilities ranked by price

1
Sentara Halifax Regional Hospital 3★ · 0.1 mi · Nonprofit
$2,130
2
Carilion New River Valley Medical Center 4★ · 0.1 mi · Nonprofit
$2,147
3
Carilion Medical Center 4★ · 0.0 mi · Nonprofit
$2,147
4
Carilion Giles Community Hospital 4★ · 0.1 mi · Nonprofit
$2,157
5
Carilion Stonewall Jackson Hospital 3★ · 0.1 mi · Nonprofit
$2,157
6
Sovah Health Danville 2★ · 0.1 mi · For-profit
$3,318
7
Lewisgale Medical Center 2★ · 0.1 mi · For-profit
$10,641
Complete facility data
# Facility Cash Price Gross Charge Markup CMS Stars Patient Rating Ownership
1 Sentara Halifax Regional Hospital Sentara Health South Boston, VA · 0.1 mi $2,130 $4,260 2.0x 3/5 71.0% Nonprofit
2 Carilion New River Valley Medical Center Carilion Clinic Christiansburg, VA · 0.1 mi $2,147 $3,578 1.67x 4/5 69.0% Nonprofit
3 Carilion Medical Center Carilion Clinic Roanoke, VA · 0.0 mi $2,147 $3,578 1.67x 4/5 66.0% Nonprofit
4 Carilion Giles Community Hospital Carilion Clinic Pearisburg, VA · 0.1 mi $2,157 $3,595 1.67x 4/5 83.0% Nonprofit
5 Carilion Stonewall Jackson Hospital Carilion Clinic Lexington, VA · 0.1 mi $2,157 $3,595 1.67x 3/5 75.0% Nonprofit
6 Sovah Health Danville Danville, VA · 0.1 mi $3,318 $8,294 2.5x 2/5 59.0% For-profit
7 Lewisgale Medical Center HCA Virginia Salem, VA · 0.1 mi $10,641 $10,641 1.0x 2/5 57.0% For-profit

Insurance negotiated rates by facility

The rates below are what each insurer has contractually agreed to pay this hospital for MRI Lumbar Spine without Contrast. Your actual out-of-pocket cost depends on your deductible status and copay structure.

Sentara Halifax Regional Hospital

Cash: $2,130
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
Sentara Health Plan Medicare Managed Care Plan $239 -$1,891
Humana Medicare Managed Care Plan $242 -$1,888
Anthem Anthem Medicare Managed Care Plan $246 -$1,884
UnitedHealthcare Snp Medicare Managed Care Plan $246 -$1,884
UnitedHealthcare All Commercial Plans $558 -$1,572
Anthem Anthem Exchange $752 -$1,378
Anthem Anthem Hmo $809 -$1,321
Anthem Anthem Ppo $834 -$1,296

Carilion New River Valley Medical Center

Cash: $2,147
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
Anthem Managed Medicaid $176 -$1,971
Sentara Health Plan Managed Medicaid $179 -$1,967
ABH of VA (formerly Coventry) Managed Medicaid $184 -$1,962
UnitedHealthcare Managed Medicaid $184 -$1,962
Humana Managed Medicaid $184 -$1,962
Aetna Medicare Advantage $204 -$1,942
Humana Dual Eligible $213 -$1,934
Humana Tricare $214 -$1,933
UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage $222 -$1,925
Humana Medicare Advantage $222 -$1,925
Anthem Medicare Advantage $224 -$1,923
Sentara Health Plan Medicare Advantage $228 -$1,919
Anthem Exchange $920 -$1,227
Anthem Commercial $1,022 -$1,125

15 additional plans not shown.

Carilion Medical Center

Cash: $2,147
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
Anthem Managed Medicaid $176 -$1,971
Sentara Health Plan Managed Medicaid $179 -$1,967
ABH of VA (formerly Coventry) Managed Medicaid $184 -$1,962
UnitedHealthcare Managed Medicaid $184 -$1,962
Humana Managed Medicaid $184 -$1,962
Aetna Medicare Advantage $204 -$1,942
Humana Dual Eligible $213 -$1,934
Humana Tricare $214 -$1,933
UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage $222 -$1,925
Humana Medicare Advantage $222 -$1,925
Anthem Medicare Advantage $224 -$1,923
Sentara Health Plan Medicare Advantage $228 -$1,919
Anthem Exchange $1,059 -$1,088
Anthem Commercial $1,177 -$970

15 additional plans not shown.

Carilion Giles Community Hospital

Cash: $2,157
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
Anthem Managed Medicaid $176 -$1,981
Sentara Health Plan Managed Medicaid $179 -$1,978
Humana Managed Medicaid $184 -$1,973
ABH of VA (formerly Coventry) Managed Medicaid $184 -$1,973
UnitedHealthcare Managed Medicaid $184 -$1,973
Humana Dual Eligible $213 -$1,944
Humana Tricare $214 -$1,943
UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage $222 -$1,935
Humana Medicare Advantage $222 -$1,935
Aetna Medicare Advantage $224 -$1,933
Anthem Medicare Advantage $224 -$1,933
Sentara Health Plan Medicare Advantage $228 -$1,929
Anthem Exchange $1,114 -$1,043
Anthem Commercial $1,238 -$919

15 additional plans not shown.

Carilion Stonewall Jackson Hospital

Cash: $2,157
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
Medicaid Traditional Medicaid $175 -$1,982
Virginia Premier - CCC Plus CCC Plus $175 -$1,982
Virginia Premier Managed Medicaid $180 -$1,977
HealthKeepers Plus Managed Medicaid $184 -$1,973
Aetna Managed Medicaid $193 -$1,964
Community Plan Managed Medicaid $193 -$1,964
Intotal Health Managed Medicaid $193 -$1,964
Magellan Complete Care Managed Medicaid $193 -$1,964
Magellan Complete Care MLTSS/CCC+ $193 -$1,964
Medicaid Managed Medicaid $193 -$1,964
Humana Dual Eligible $226 -$1,931
Humana Medicare Advantage $230 -$1,927
Medicare Traditional Medicare $230 -$1,927
Anthem Medicare Advantage $242 -$1,915

21 additional plans not shown.

Lewisgale Medical Center

Cash: $10,641
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
Anthem HIX $354 -$10,288
Anthem HMO $393 -$10,248
Anthem PPO $393 -$10,248
UnitedHealthcare AllPayerAppendix $518 -$10,123
Lifeworks MCR $2,022 -$8,619
Universal Healthcare Group MCR $2,341 -$8,300
Aetna SharedSavings $2,994 -$7,647
Virginia Health Network ULTRA $3,724 -$6,917
UnitedHealthcare OptionsPPO $4,044 -$6,597
UnitedHealthcare GlobalBenefitPlan $4,788 -$5,853
Aetna Broad $5,746 -$4,895
Greenvbrier Sporting Club COMM $6,385 -$4,256
Virginia Health Network COMM $7,555 -$3,086
Virginia Health Network WC $7,555 -$3,086
CorVel WorkersComp $7,662 -$2,979

11 additional plans not shown.

Before you call

The data in this report is from each hospital's publicly filed prices. Here's how to use it.

Confirm the price

Call the hospital's billing department and ask for a price estimate or Good Faith Estimate for MRI Lumbar Spine without Contrast (CPT 72148). Under federal law, they must provide this. Compare it to the published price in this report.

Ask about cash pay

If you haven't met your deductible, ask for the cash/self-pay rate. At many hospitals, the cash price is lower than the insurance-negotiated rate. You can see this in the insurance table above — some negotiated rates exceed the cash price.

Compare before you schedule

You are not required to use the facility your doctor referred you to. You can request a referral to any in-network facility. The same procedure, same quality — sometimes at a fraction of the price.

Ask about financial help

Most nonprofit hospitals in Virginia offer financial assistance to patients based on household income. This is separate from insurance — even insured patients can qualify. Ask billing for their Financial Assistance Policy.

Financial assistance by facility

Nonprofit hospitals are legally required to have financial assistance programs. Below is what we know about each facility's charitable care.

Facility Status Charity Care Provided How to Apply
Sentara Halifax Regional Hospital Nonprofit Call billing, request Financial Assistance application
Carilion New River Valley Medical Center Nonprofit Call billing, request Financial Assistance application
Carilion Medical Center Nonprofit Call billing, request Financial Assistance application
Carilion Giles Community Hospital Nonprofit Call billing, request Financial Assistance application
Carilion Stonewall Jackson Hospital Nonprofit Call billing, request Financial Assistance application
Sovah Health Danville For-profit N/A (for-profit)
Lewisgale Medical Center For-profit N/A (for-profit)

What to do next

  1. Identify your top 2-3 facilities based on price, quality rating, and distance. The data in this report shows that lower price does not mean lower quality — check the star ratings.
  2. Call billing before you schedule. Confirm the published price. Ask for a Good Faith Estimate. Ask whether there's a prompt-pay or cash-pay discount beyond the listed rate.
  3. Check your deductible status. If you haven't met your deductible, compare the cash rate to what you'd owe through insurance. In some cases, paying cash is cheaper than using your plan.
  4. Apply for financial assistance if your household income is under $60,000-$125,000 (thresholds vary). Most eligible patients never apply because they don't know the program exists.
  5. Get everything in writing. Before your procedure, get a written price estimate. After, review the bill line by line. Roughly 80% of hospital bills contain errors (Becker's Hospital Review).

Data sources

Hospital prices
Published machine-readable files, required under CMS Hospital Price Transparency Rule (45 CFR Part 180)
Quality ratings
CMS Hospital Compare, updated quarterly
Patient satisfaction
HCAHPS (Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems)
Financial data
CMS Cost Reports (charity care, revenue) and IRS 990 filings (officer compensation)

This report is for informational purposes only. It is not medical advice. Every price shown is a price a hospital published — not an estimate. Actual out-of-pocket costs depend on your insurance plan, deductible status, and clinical circumstances. Consult your healthcare provider and insurer before making decisions.